


Gravitational Attraction

by aaliyahhigurashireborn



Category: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Developing Relationship, F/M, Non-Sexual Slavery, Rape/Non-con Elements, Unresolved Romantic Tension, Work In Progress
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-24
Updated: 2017-07-01
Packaged: 2018-11-18 15:29:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,662
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11293515
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aaliyahhigurashireborn/pseuds/aaliyahhigurashireborn
Summary: After being sold into First Order slavery, Rey finds herself a part of the sanitation crew. A chance run-in with General Hux brings her closer to a figure from the past. She gets pulled into training and grows closer to her new Master along the way, in ways that neither of them anticipated. Both master and student learn that nothing is simple.*re-write from FF.net*





	1. The Beginning

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Gravitational Attraction](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/302097) by Aaliyah Higurashi Reborn. 



_**Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars in any right or fashion. If I did, Reylo would be canon. An important note for this story, you can find the old copy on FF.net, but I had some help revamping this version from PalenDrome (nerdherderette). I appreciate her help with my pet project, and may we begin this journey once more.** _

* * *

 

_"Rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life." - J.K. Rowling_

Hardly anything had made sense in Rey's life up to this point. From childhood, she had been raised on Jakku by the blobfish Unkar Plutt, scouting out pieces of scrap metal and salvageable vehicle parts to eke out a minor existence. Rey was used to hard labor, unforgiving conditions and careful people. That part had made sense, and she had learned not to dwell on her loneliness and solitary survival.

It was a way of life – no, existing. That word kept cropping up as she sat on a cold, metal seat aboard a Star Destroyer, bound for who knows where. She shared a seat with five others, and there were another six seated on the one facing them. Unkar Plutt traded one form of captivity for another when he sold them to the First Order, and there was nothing further to be said concerning the matter. They sat in silence, young and old alike, fearful of what their future held in store.

The silence was broken when a young boy asked the question that was on everyone's mind.

"Where are they taking us?" His little body trembled in fear and cold, and as he huddled up closer to his mother, Rey knew there was no definitive answer to share. The mother merely put a finger to her mouth to silence him, and pulled him into her lap to embrace him. Rey did not have a large understanding of others beyond her scavenging skills, but she understood well that the mother did not have the heart to tell her son how afraid she was as well. Everyone watched in morbid curiosity as the mother's eyes welled up into tears, and the awkward silence returned to the air.

After countless hours, a Stormtrooper came back to the cargo hold and stared each one of them down as though they were merely cattle for sale. Some captives shivered at the exchange, but a few of the men demonstrated bravely by meeting the Stormtrooper's stares. The reactions made no difference; they were all at the mercy of the First Order with nothing to fight back. Wars were won with weapons, not merely strong personalities.

"We're arriving at our destination. Line up quietly and follow me." The trooper's tone left no room for refusal, so with a resigned air, all of the captives nodded in affirmation.

About ten minutes later, a slight jolt and a mechanical hissing sound signaled their arrival. Everyone in the cargo hold lined up as they were instructed, and twelve became thirteen when they were joined by another Stormtrooper. As they marched into frigid, biting air, Rey saw a silvery white substance falling from the sky.

"What is this?" She wasn't asking anyone in particular, but the lead trooper turned around and answered her question with a condescending sneer.

"Haven't you ever seen snow? Ignorant slaves from Jakku..." His remark trailed off into the snow and they continued to march into a large steel facility.

The sheer size of the building elicited a collective gasp from the imprisoned party, and suddenly Rey felt more anxious than ever. None of the detained had been told where they were headed, or for what purpose. Of course she was outraged when the troopers dragged her onto the ship, limbs flailing the whole way. Who was Unkar Plutt to sell her away like a piece of his own property? Yes, she had no family, but that did not mean that she belonged to anyone else.

The end effect was the same though: she was no longer her own person, even though the title of scavenger was certainly not her dream endgame. There was no one to listen to the complaints of a lowly scavenger that no one would miss, and the reality sank in. Something about the sight laid before her established the ending of a period, for there would be no return to Jakku.

Rey shivered as the sun that once served as a formidable foe disappeared and snow cooled her body through her pitiful rags. She may not know where she was, or who she was dealing with, but she would continue to survive as per the usual.

Rey's thoughts suddenly came to a halt when her eyes met the personnel marching around the facility. The lead trooper turned to the company as the group’s progress came to a complete stop.

"This is Starkiller Base. You now belong to the First Order, and will behave as such. Cooperation will be rewarded, and opposition will be punished. Now, who among you are brave?”

Everyone shivered, and the trooper laughed sneeringly, maliciously.

“That’s what I thought. All the men, step to the left.” The older men obeyed, but the young boy remained, fearfully clinging to his mother’s skirt.

“You too, boy.” He looked up toward his mother’s face, tears shining from his small brown eyes.

“Mama, please…” A trooper strode up and grabbed the boy from his mother, yanking him in line with the rest of the men. His mother cried out, and despite her fear, moved forward in an effort to console him.

“Get back in line, woman,” the trooper snarled, threatening her with the end of his blaster.

One of the captive men grabbed the boy by the hand and looked at his mother. “We’ll take care of him, Sheera,” he said. She nodded, though her eyes quickly filled with tears as the trooper from the back led the men away. Rey gritted her teeth, realizing this was the way of war. Families torn apart, devastation visiting each location and sweeping away bonds like the wind. The men were herded down the hall, leaving the five remaining women to stare and wonder what their fate would bring.

The lead trooper returned, displaying his blaster in a menacing fashion. “The rest of you will follow me.” The group made their way down the maze of corridors before taking a lift to the third floor. There were no discernible characteristics to any of the corridors, making memorization an unattainable task for the moment.

Rey’s mind swam with new fears: how would she find her way through such a cold, sterile environment. Jakku had been a hell in itself to navigate, but an unfamiliar facility was worse.

When they finally reached what Rey supposed was their destination, the trooper put his hand up to the reader, doors opening with a whooshing noise. A rich brown desk, neatly stacked with tablets and a few commlinks decorated the space. Behind the desk stood two individuals, a red-headed man with a no-nonsense expression, and an armor-clad warrior in head to toe chrome plating.

“Welcome to Starkiller Base. I am General Hux, and this is Captain Phasma.” General Hux did not smile or emit any type of warmth, and both the First Order leaders stood with their hands behind their back; a formal gesture, not necessarily of polite foundations. The red-headed general gestured to the chrome decorated captain, and a smooth female voice emerged from behind the mask.

“Your group has been chosen to become part of the First Order, and you will have an opportunity to demonstrate which side you favor by completing general tasks assigned to you.” She gestured toward two of the older women and addressed the trooper blocking the door. “These two will not do for manual labor. Take them to the testing facilities and see if they have any other useful purposes.” The trooper nodded, and led the elder women out of the office.

 _And now there were three_ , Rey thought to herself.

“If you disobey the Order, you will be disposed of. The area of Niima Outpost has been declared a neutral territory, so unlike the Resistance, you do not automatically get branded as a traitor.” Hux spat the last word as though it were venom in his mouth. “The captain will assign you to your tasks, and you will be observed. There is nowhere you can run, nowhere you can hide. Do the right thing, and do not fight us. We are not your enemy.” With that last remark, he waved them off.

The three women stood, strangers tied together by their unfortunate circumstances.  Breaking them from their silent reveries, Captain Phasma addressed them once more.

“You will be tasked with sanitation and housekeeping. Your work starts tomorrow, so for now, I will show you to your rooms. When I come to retrieve you in the morning, do not be late.”

Rey was shown to her own room by another trooper, and she experienced sensory overload for the first time in years. Her room was quite a bit larger than the AT-AT she had made her home on Jakku. A twin-sized bed with grey sheets sat in the middle of the room, serving as the primary decoration. Sitting down on it, Rey realized this was the softest piece of furniture she’d ever owned, which was a foreign sensation in and of itself. All of this was too much, too intense.

Standing up to shake herself from these spiraling thoughts, she explored the rest of the room, opening the small fresher. A sonic shower took up the back corner, and the sink near the door had two fluffy towels waiting. Observing herself in the sink mirror, Rey realized that her tanned skin was covered in sand and dirt, and she couldn’t remember the last time she’d actually washed her clothes. What was the point when you knew you were going right back out into the same conditions. No, that was an extreme luxury, one that hardly anyone on Jakku could afford.

She had no idea what her purpose on Starkiller Base was, and honestly, right now, she didn’t care. She just wanted to mind her own business and keep her head low, just as she had for the last few years of her life. Her stomach growled, reminding her that it had been some time since she’d eaten.

Looking through the one cabinet she’d been supplied in her room, Rey found four ration kits as well as a canteen of water. She consumed one of the packets standing and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, drinking some of the slightly stale water from her new canteen. A profound wave of sleepiness enveloped her, and she knew she needed to clean herself up before going to bed.

The sonic echoed throughout her quarters in a way that made her simultaneously feel safe and on guard. While it was a true that she’d been alone for a large part of her life now, she kept feeling as though it was all too good to be true, and that someone would throw her into a prison at any moment.

Putting those thoughts away, she stepped into the shower and watched as a puddle of dirt and filth accumulated at the bottom of the tub. Grabbing a bar of soap, she rubbed the cleansing bubbles across her hands and began cleaning herself. The soap smelled of petrichor, causing tears to well up in her eyes. The fresh smell of rain on the desert sand was a godsend, but this was on a whole new level, one that she had lost hope in experiencing.

After she was properly cleaned and scrubbed a bright pink, Rey grabbed a towel from the sink and walked into the main room. A quick look inside the cabinet near the bed showed that she now owned two sets of black robes. She took one out and pulled them on, falling back on the bed with a small thump once she was finished.

* * *

 

The day had been far too exhausting, and Rey’s emotions had stretched so thin in less than twenty-four hours. She found herself lying on the bed, drifting in and out of sleep before finally being overtaken by a profound wave of weariness.

Her eyes opened to an island environment, feeling the sun in a far different manner than before. She was not burning in the heat as she had in the past, but enjoying it now. Her normally dirty clothes were beige colored from a recent washing, and her hair flowed freely from the usual three buns she wore. Rey closed her eyes and let her face go toward the sun, raising her arms. She felt more free than ever with the salty ocean breeze reaching her nose, and she felt infinite.

Peace flowed through her for the longest moment, and then suddenly, Rey felt a presence behind her. It was between warmth and coolness, and she turned quickly to find the source. The sun turned to warm rain and she saw a tall man clad in black. He raised his face to meet her surprised gaze, and she saw a beaten metal mask. He came at her swiftly and drew a crackling red lightsaber, poising himself to take her down.

Rey screamed and woke with a start, throwing herself into a fighting position. The nightmare had brought heat to her face, and the resulting realization that no one was around her had embarrassed her. Just to be sure, she checked all of her area. When nothing was found, she crawled back under the covers, confused as to what her dream was trying to convey.

* * *

 

Many rooms down, a dark-haired man was awoken with a jolt. Sweat poured from his forehead, and he wiped it away with the back of his hand, trying to ignore the slight tremble. As he opened his eyes, he felt his throat go dry. “She’s here.”

* * *

 


	2. What Doesn't Kill You

**_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars in any shape, form or fashion. I'm just a rabid fangirl looking for a good time, lol._ **

* * *

 

_ "Strength does not come from winning. Your struggles develop your strengths. When you go through hardships and decide not to surrender, that is strength." - Arnold Schwarzenegger _

 

Eighteen days. It had been eighteen days since Rey had been taken from ‘home,’ however meager it may have been.

It was common knowledge that after performing a routine or activity for twenty-one days straight, it would become a habit. She was close to having her routine down as a habit - every morning she would don the all-black attire that was associated with the First Order (so strange from her usual beige) and begin making her way down to the linen room at six sharp. 

For the first week, Captain Phasma would meet the three girls and make sure they were actually performing their duties before leaving them, all the while muttering something about babysitting and things not being in her job description. On the second week, she entrusted them to be on their own.  They had little little choice; there was no place to go, nowhere to escape to, and they had not seen the rest of the captives since they each received new assignments.  Once the day was done, the young women reconvened in the linen room, put up their carts and supplies and went to the mess hall to grab a quick bite.

"How have they been treating you guys," one of the girls asked. 

She was blonde, but that’s all Rey knew about her.  She hadn’t bothered to learn their names.  There didn’t seem to be much point to it, when they only met up twice a day.

"Fair enough," Rey responded simply.  While she was starving for conversation and personal exchanges, she was afraid to voice anything that could be misconstrued.  People were not often forgiving or understanding of social faux-pas.  


"No one's been cruel, but I was told to avoid the red-headed general," whispered the brunette. She leaned even closer and the other two followed suit. "He liked to punish the servants, and he especially likes to dominate women." They leaned back and finished their dinner, a simple soup with bread. The food could hardly be called extravagant, but compared to the dehydrated rations Rey was used to, it seemed like a feast.  She listened as the others shared gossip back and forth, not quite sure where to interject herself into the conversation.

After the three of them finished eating, they took off to their respective rooms and retired for the night. The physical exhaustion should have overtaken Rey, but after her shower, she felt more awake than she had the whole day. She recalled hearing something about a library on her floor, and honestly, it never hurt anyone to have more knowledge. After changing into a clean pair of robes, she took off down the hallway, feet softly padding the floor through her sandals. 

She checked to make sure the hallway was clear before exploring further.   During her search for the library, she found herself ducking behind a wall several times to avoid a Stormtrooper.   Although they had not been explicitly warned against wandering the facility, Rey thought it best to be safe.  Fifteen minutes later, she discovered a set of silver sliding doors. The doors slid open and her eyes went wide as she was met with row upon row of shelves.

She ran across the polished floor, buns flopping on her head the whole way. There were signs depicting sections on history, war tactics, and repairing droids. Thirsty for new knowledge, she headed for the history section and grabbed a tablet labeled  _ Coming to Power: History of the First Order _ .  Time flew as she drank in the information in front of her and quickly, she lost herself in her surroundings.

"Eager, clever girl. What are you doing out of your room?" Rey's head snapped up, nearly causing her to drop the tablet.    


A quick stare up and down the intruder’s outfit told her of his identity.  A black greatcoat decorated with the insignia of a general covered the man, and his red hair was perfected combed and laid against his scalp.  It had been eighteen days ago today since she had first met this man before her.  General Hux wore a half-smile as he strode over to where she stood. 

"I heard of a library on this floor and wished to entertain myself. Are we not supposed to leave our area?" 

He took the tablet from her and placed it back on the shelf. She gulped hard as the brunette’s warning from earlier echoed in her mind. This was not a place to be alone.

"Most young women do not leave their assigned areas unescorted. It's not safe to be out by yourself." Hux moved closer to Rey, and she backed into the bookshelf as his arms came up around her head. "You might find yourself in an... undesirable situation." He whispered the last two words in a menacing tone, and Rey knew her choice to wander was going to cost her dearly. Her breath caught in her throat as though she was choking, and she started to sweat.

"Please let me go," she whispered, feeling caged by Hux's arms. "I promise I'll go back to my room and not wander again."

"It's a little too late for that, don't you think?" He lowered his right hand and grabbed her waist. "I rather think you would be a delicious morsel, girl." 

He gripped her face and yanked upward, pulling her terrified eyes to meet his face. He smirked coldly, pulling her mouth to his. She tried to scream as she felt his right hand traveling downward, landing between her legs. He swallowed her scream and began rubbing her in hard motions.

Rey's hands landed on his chest as she tried to push him away.  As she did so, she felt a large amount of energy go through her body causing Hux to be thrown away from her and into the nearest bookshelf.  The shelf fell with him on top of it, slamming down and shaking the floor.

* * *

Rey ran to escape while she could, regretting her choice to roam.  Her eyes filled with tears as she became lost along the way, only to stop when she barreled into a tall, black-clad man.  Her eyes went upward and she felt another stab of fear as the mask from her dreams.  The same beaten mask from her first night here was now in front of her, blocking her only escape route.  Why were all of these people from her first days on Starkiller Base coming to meet her once more, today of all days?

"Please, don't hurt me." She stumbled backward and fell at his feet, wiping hard at her eyes.  "I'm sorry, just leave me alone." 

Her breath came quick and she rushed to her feet, scrambling around the man she had just ran into. As soon as she reached her room, she crawled into a ball on the bed and began to cry in earnest.

* * *

 

Kylo Ren was hardly ever baffled, but this was one of those rare occasions.  A little over two weeks ago, he felt a change in the Force, signaling the return of a particular girl.  The child he had dropped off on Jakku had grown into a young woman, and she was stumbling through the hallways of Starkiller Base with tears streaking her cheeks. He had turned to ask her what had happened, but she ran as though he was the bane of her existence. Something had happened; she was running from someone. 

He stalked his way down the hallway to where the library doors were stuck in a halfway open position. He forced them open and found tablets and documents strewn across the floor with the general on top of an overturned bookcase and looking as if he had been knocked out.  It was a hell of a hit, and he felt residual energy flowing through the room. The girl had used the Force.

He waved his hand through the air and Hux awoke with a snarl.

"Where is she?" 

Ren smirked beneath the mask, gathering an idea of what had happened.

"Women don't seem to take to molestation too lightly,  _ General _ ." Ren sneered the last word. "Maybe you should stick to what you do best." The dark-haired man started to walk out of the room and Hux called him back.

"Don't you think it would be helpful to use those  _ powers _ to clean up this mess?" Ren turned to face the offensive man, nearly laughing.

"You made the mess, you figure it out." He left the red-headed man steaming, wiping blood from his nose. 

Ren felt Snoke pulling at the back of his mind, and it just so happened that this situation could use a report. He would speak with his Master as soon as he got a confirmation of what had happened. With that thought, he strode off toward the girl's quarters.

* * *

 

The water just wasn't hot enough to clean the filth from her body. She scrubbed until her skin burned, and she could still feel the General's hands on her. She gagged, turning off the shower and grabbing a robe from the sink. 

There would be no looking in the mirror; she was ashamed of herself.  If she had been back on Jakku, this would never have happened.  Had the other girls not warned her about Hux’s reputation?  She recalled the surge of energy which threw him off, and wondered where it had come from.    


As Rey walked back into her bedroom, she grabbed her desert clothes and slung them on. The black robes were too much of a reminder of where she was stuck, with no way out. As she was pulling her hair up into her trademark buns, the door to her quarters slid open. The tall masked man from earlier entered, putting her immediately on guard.  "What do you want?"

"Your social skills could use some refining, girl." A deep mechanical voice emitted from the mask, and she felt the bile rising in her throat.

"That's brilliant coming from a creature that just makes themselves at home in someone else's living space." She felt the words come out before she could bite them back. A chuckle came from the mask. "Do you need something, or is there a greater reason for intruding on what little bit of privacy I own?" The question sounded more tired than irritated.

"Do you know who I am?" He cocked his head to the side as she squinted her eyes.

"I am sure I have never met another man who wears a mask." The sarcasm was rich, and he could appreciate the fight in her. "Maybe if I saw a face, I might pull some recognition from somewhere." A moment of quiet passed between them, and his hands moved toward the mask. With a hiss, it came off and she stared at a face that she couldn't quite place.

* * *

 

He couldn't tell you what made him do it. Maybe it was some form of the past that rose up in him, or maybe it was sheer curiosity in what she would do when she saw his face. Either way, she did look curious, and he could tell that she couldn't completely recognize him. Perhaps she was trying to recall childhood memories, but that would be damn near impossible considering how small she had been.

Finally the silence was broken by Rey, her voice sounding unsure. 

"Sorry, am I supposed to know you?"  He was a bit disappointed, but there wasn’t much else to do.

"No, I wouldn't expect you to know me. I am Kylo Ren, leader of the Knights of Ren." 

"I am Rey, of Jakku. Well, that's where I lived before I was brought here." She looked lost in thought as she spoke. "I'm surprised we haven't met, I've been here for almost three weeks."

"I'm not a social person."  Rey nodded in understanding.

"I gather that. Anyway, I’m getting ready to retire for the night.  Will that be all of your questioning for the night?" Her eyes grew dark and brooding as she revisited the situation he had found her in earlier.  Hopefully this wouldn’t be a repeat experience.

"Yes," he replied. "What happened with General Hux earlier?  I found him in... quite an interesting position." He worked hard to keep the smile off his face. It was challenging considering Hux got what he asked for. The girl was scrappy, he had to admit.

"Nothing," she bit out quickly. His face must have given a look of disapproval because she wilted and sat back on the bed. "He found me and..." She didn't have the heart to finish the statement.

"I don't need a countenance of that part. Did you use the Force?" Rey's eyebrows lowered over her eyes and she looked confused.

"What is that?" It was his turn to look baffled. How could she use powers she didn't even know she had?

"Did you send energy through your body at the general?" She looked embarrassed with red cheeks as her eyes met his.

"I think so." He nodded and stood up taller.

"I'll be back to speak with you later. Until then, continue doing.... whatever it was that you were doing." Rey's face contorted into a half smile at his awkwardness and Ren turned his back. He pulled his mask back on and was about to exit the room when she called out to him.

"What do I call you? And how do you know what I did?" He looked at her one more time, seeing a part of the child he had abandoned long ago.

"Both of those matters will be addressed when I find you again." With that cryptic statement, he opened the door and made his way to the Supreme Leader.

* * *

 


End file.
